Today has been a day of leisure and exploring. We woke early but laid about trying to get motivated. It was about 0730 by the time we got going and headed straight for Zebedee Springs. These hot springs are open from 0600-1200, after which they are for the exclusive use of the ‘discerning guests’ from the homestead. We were about the fourth vehicle there and found a small warm pool in which to relax. About ten minutes later two 4WD buses turned up with about 30 passengers so we were soon overrun.
It became particularly unpleasant when several of them lit up cigarettes. I suppose I should have sympathy for these poor drug addicts who cannot go more than a few hours without polluting themselves, those around them and the environment in general. We were breathing some of the cleanest air on the planet and these idiots can’t wait to fill it with the incomplete combustion of a feral weed. And of course what doesn’t go up in smoke or into their lungs gets spread about on the ground until the butt (which takes over 5 years to break down) is crushed into the ground and then ignored as if it never existed.
We quickly left Zebedee, promising ourselves we would return early the next morning.
We then headed off on one of the 4WD trips on the property. This took us to a place called Tier Gorge. The gorge is on a side track from the large loop track and we though it would be more popular. We were the first to arrive at the gorge and took advantage of the shaded pools reflecting the screw palms and eucalyptus. The water was beautiful to taste and reminded me on the spring water in Llangorse in Wales.
Having such a stunningly beautiful place all to ourselves has been the highlight of the trip so far. We spent about one and a half hours swimming, sitting, lying on the cool rock and listening to the hypnotic gurgling of the water cascading down the rocks as it has done for millions of years before today.
Part of the safety of driving in these parts is to drive with your headlights on. This enables you to be easily seen through the dust clouds that envelope your car when another car passes. Having your headlights on prevents accidents and saves live. That is one side.
I haven’t seen any statistics on people who have perished in the desert after leaving their headlights on after they stopped and not being able to start the car again. One and a half hours of swimming is about the right amount of time to get two or three promising but ultimately unsuccessful turns of the engine before dying completely.
Luckily the car has two batteries. One for the engine and one for the fridge and interior lights. It should have been as easy as swapping the battery leads, except the leads wouldn’t reach. It was then necessary to swapp the batteries themselves, but the nuts on the battery clamps were 9mm and the cheese spanners provided with the vehicle only had even numbers.
The second battery was a deep cycle battery designed to give the slow steady output required by the fridge, not the big single bursts required by the starter motor. However it worked and once the engine was going, I swapped the batteries back and left it running for about 20 minutes to get the charge back up. All was well after that.
We finished that 4WD circuit and headed to Moonshine Gully which was a varied drive through rock, sand and three interesting river crossings. The walk at the end of the drive was long and the middle section not recommended in the heat of the day. Luckily there was a swimmable stretch of water within 200m of the car park. We took our chairs and sat in the river reading our books for an hour. The only disturbance was the occasional gentle plop as a fish surfaced to grab an insect. This was another blissful moment. Two in the one day!.
As a spot of luxury we are having dinner in the restaurant. Until then we are watching the sunset, listening to the birds, feeling the air cool against our skins and having a cleansing ale or two to settle the dust in our dry throats.
Tags: el questro, flat battery, Moonshine Gully, smokers, Zebedee Springs
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